The Difference a Kiss Can Make
by Guardian of Nesh
Summary: Naruto's stomach cramps from the spoiled milk come a couple of minutes later so instead of running away he gets to kiss Sakura on their first day as Team 7. This kiss and its aftermath have unforeseen consequences on everyone's lives.
1. Chapter 1: The Kiss

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

 **The Difference a Kiss Can Make**

 **Chapter 1: The Kiss**

Naruto Uzumaki, currently disguised as the class heartthrob Sasuke Uchiha had finally caught sight of his crush. The pink haired Sakura Haruno was sitting on a bench outside the Konoha Ninja Academy, in actuality she hadn't been too hard to find. He'd seen her only a few minutes earlier when she'd brushed him off about having lunch together, despite the fact that they were now on the same ninja squad. She'd even gone so far as to call him annoying.

Now that he was disguised as Sasuke however, that would all change. Sakura from some reason that completely eluded Naruto had a crush on the Uchiha, despite the fact that Sasuke barely even spoke to anyone as far as Naruto had seen. As expected, upon seeing "Sasuke" Sakura's face lit up.

"Sasuke." She said, sounding surprised, though given how Sasuke usually ignored her Naruto thought that made sense. He strode over to her, trying to exude that same cool attitude his rival did. At least Naruto thought of Sasuke as a rival, the Uchiha just ignored him like he did everyone else.

"Sakura, your forehead is so wide and charming; it makes me feel like kissing it." Naruto said. Then he thought better of it, saying something like that was _way_ out of character for Sasuke. He was so preoccupied with trying to figure out how not to blow his cover that he completely missed the hopeful look in Sakura's eyes. Finally he decided on a good cover story.

"Just kidding, that's the kind of dumb thing Naruto would say."

"Oh." Sakura groaned softly and lowered her head well Naruto sat down next to her.

"So, Sakura I wanted to ask you something. He said.

"What is it Sasuke?" She asked.

"Naruto, what do you think of him?" Naruto asked. Sakura seemed puzzled for a moment as to why Sasuke would be asking what she thought of Naruto. Naruto almost retracted the question as not to raise suspicion, but this was the entire point of everything he'd done so far so there was no sense in turning back now.

"Naruto, he's annoying. He knows about my feelings and constantly tries to get in the way. He doesn't care about anyone but himself and he's loud and immature. In short, he's annoying. What I really want is just for you to accept me Sasuke."

Naruto paled a bit as Sakura began to lean in. He knew what she was intending to do of course. Heck, he wanted to kiss her too. He was just kind of shocked that she was so willing to kiss Sasuke. Did she really like the guy _that_ much?

"You just want me to accept you?" Naruto stammered.

"I'm desperate." Sakura cooed with a deep red blush on her face. She leaned in closer. Naruto in this moment finally began to understand why he liked Sakura so much. She was like him, she just wanted acceptance. All this time they'd had more in common than either had realized. Naruto leaned in and closed the distance between his and Sakura's lips.

The next thirty seconds were heavenly. The two preteens closed their eyes and basked in the hesitant, innocent kiss, each as nervous as the other. This sure beat the heck out of his accidental kiss with Sasuke. Nothing could ruin this moment...

His stomach started to cramp. Naruto knew he needed to get to the bathroom _fast_. He could already feel his control of the Transformation jutsu slipping. He tried to break the kiss but Sakura wrapped her arm around his neck and deepened it.

Naruto tried desperately to break free of her grip but Sakura was far stronger than her slim frame would lead one to believe. Crap, this was bad. If he didn't get away soon...

Pop! The Transformation jutsu lapsed and Naruto was filled with an overwhelming sense of doom. His eyes still closed, though more from the pain of the stomach cramps than anything else, Naruto felt Sakura push him away.

" _ **Naruto I'm going to**_ **kill** _ **you!**_ " Sakura screeched. Before he could even utter a syllable in protest Sakura began wailing on Naruto like never before. She'd cuffed him on the the head before and that had _hurt_ but it was nothing like this. She was raining blows on whatever part of him she could reach. Even if he hadn't already been having problems Naruto would've crapped his pants just from sheer terror and fear for his life.

His bowels letting go coincided with a lull in the beating. Feeling a bit brave Naruto opened his eyes a crack to see Sakura recoiling from the smell. This whole thing was just embarrassing. Footsteps on the cobblestones alerted him to someone else approaching. Naruto craned his neck to see Sasuke approaching, having coming out from the shadows of the nearby trees.

"What's going on here?" He asked in his usual cold tone.

"Naruto transformed into you and kissed me so I'm teaching him a lesson." Sakura said. Sasuke looked down at Naruto in disgust.

"You did all that just so you could kiss _her_? You really are pathetic Naruto." He declared. He then began to walk away.

"Did all what Sasuke?" Sakura asked.

"Naruto got the drop on me and tied me up before transforming into me, presumably so I wouldn't interrupt your little make-out session." He said, he didn't even bother to stop walking.

"Naruto tied _you_ up? I don't believe it. Aren't you mad at him?" Sakura asked. Naruto took advantage of the conversation to begin to crawl away. Now that Sakura's attention was off of him he wanted to get the hell out of dodge as quickly and safely as possible.

"Mad, why would I be mad? I was just curious about what gave Dead Last Uzumaki the guts to take me on like that. Now that I know I really couldn't care less. As far as I'm concerned you two are perfect for each other. You're both _annoying_. I can't believe I got stuck on a team with you idiots. Just do me a favor and stay out of my way."

By this point Naruto was a safe distance away so he got off the ground and started running back toward his apartment. He could see that Sakura was clearly crestfallen from Sasuke's words and normally he would've tried to comfort her but he got the feeling that that particular idea would be bad for his health. Besides, he _really_ needed to change his clothes.

It didn't take him long to get home, he had a lot of motivation to be fast. He didn't want to miss meeting his Jonin instructor after all. However when he opened the door he found a silver haired masked man snooping through his stuff. "Who are you and how did you get in my house?" He demanded.

The stranger turned nonchalantly and smiled at Naruto through his mask. Naruto noticed that thee man was a shinobi now and that his headband was positioned so that it covered his left eye. "Oh me, I'm Kakashi Hatake, your new Jonin instructor. As for how I got in here, the Hokage let me in. I wanted to take a look around and get a sense of what your life was like Naruto." Kakashi's tone was entirely relaxed, as if there was absolutely nothing odd about this situation.

"Well, if Old Man Hokage let you in here I guess it's okay, but wait, shouldn't you be at the academy right now? I mean the Jonin instructors are supposed to meet up with their new students there." Naruto said.

"I could ask you the same question. Why aren't _you_ at the academy Naruto?" Kakashi asked. Naruto gulped, knowing there was no point in lying because then he wouldn't get his clothes.

"I had a bathroom accident and came home to change my clothes."

"Well, that's what you get for drinking milk that's three weeks past the expiration date. Now then, why are you all covered in bruises?"

"I sort of transformed into Sasuke to get close to our other teammate Sakura. We kissed but the bathroom issues made me lose control of the jutsu so she found out and beat me up for it."

"We're going to have a little talk about that later Naruto, right now, get changed, I'm taking you to the hospital."

"Why would you take me to the hospital, they don't even like me there." Naruto protested.

"Because I have to make sure your new teammate didn't do any permanent damage to you, and we need to get you something for your little bowel problem." Kakashi said.

"What if I refuse?"

"Then I'll carry you there Naruto. You still want to change your clothes and I'm a former ANBU captain; in short, you're not getting away."

"Fine." Naruto said before beginning to change.

* * *

Kakashi sat on the side of Naruto's hospital bed and watched his new student down a foul smelling green concoction that was supposed to help with his diarrhea, the doctors had said that Sakura had only bruised him so he would be fine to leave after this. "Yuck," the boy shouted as he recoiled in disgust, "Why does medicine always have to taste like crap? Why can't they make it taste like miso ramen or something?"

"I actually have a theory about why medicine tastes so bad. You see I think that doctors have found that the worse a medicine tastes the better it works. So you should be glad that tastes as bad as it does, it means you'll get better and quickly too."

"Eh, I don't buy it Kakashi-sensei. I think you're just nuts." Naruto was squinting at Kakashi as if he were trying to dissect him with his eyes. Naruto was calling him sensei already, given what he'd heard about the boy that was a bit surprising.

"Suit yourself. So why don't you tell me _exactly_ why this Sakura gave you such a vicious beating. Leave nothing out. I need to know what I'm going into after all." Kakashi said.

"Well Kakashi-sensei, it's like this you see. I _really_ like Sakura, but she won't give me the time of day because she likes that slug Sasuke. Don't ask me why, all he does is sit around and brood all the time, but all the girls go nuts over him. So I used my Shadow Clone and Substitution jutsus to get the drop on Sasuke and tie him up so that I could transform into him and ask Sakura what she really thought about me. One thing led to another and I ended up kissing her as Sasuke, but the stomach cramps made me lose control of the jutsu and... let's just say Sakura wasn't happy when she found out."

"Naruto, tricking Sakura like that wasn't right, and neither was attacking Sasuke. Now that doesn't excuse Sakura's actions either, but when we join them at the academy I want you to apologize to both of them."

"I guess you've got a point Kakashi-sensei. Tricking Sakura like that wasn't very nice. I know I'd want revenge if someone did that to me. I'll apologize to Sakura, but I don't think I need to apologize to Sasuke. I mean he found Sakura beating me up and just walked away, said he didn't even care about what I did to him. He just insulted both of us, and told us to stay out of his way before leaving."

"Did he now?" Kakashi was starting to get a feel for what his new team was going to be like, painfully it was a lot like his old one. Naruto was Obito, Sakura was Rin, and Sasuke, well Sasuke was him way back when. This was going to be a headache wasn't it? That is if the three of them somehow manged to pass the bell test, which it was very possible they wouldn't. "So tell me Naruto, why do you like Sakura?"

"Well, she's pretty for starters. What with her pink hair and green eyes. I think her big forehead is really cute, even though she hates it. She's pretty nice, at least to people who don't annoy her like I do or tease her about her forehead. If you do tease her about it or annoy her she kind of _explodes_ , but I think the biggest reason I like her is she's like me. She's always been shunned for something she had no control over. Her for her forehead and me for..." He nodded toward his stomach. No more needed to be said, Kakashi knew what was there: The Fourth Hokage's seal. The Kyuubi.

"So that's why, you think she might be able to understand you on some level." Kakashi surmised.

"Not that it matters. She thinks I'm an annoying worthless wimp." Kakashi had to shake his head in amusement.

"Just like your parents." He hadn't meant to say it out loud and once he did he knew it was going to cause him some sort of trouble.

"You knew my parents? Who were they?" Naruto asked.

"Your father was my sensei when I became a ninja. Beyond that I'm not sure I should say much else; I'm not sure you can handle it just yet."

"Not too long ago I found out I had a demon fox inside me. I handled that pretty well, what could possibly be _worse_ than that Kakashi-sensei?"

"Fair point," he admitted, "Come on, we're going to make another stop before we go to the academy, one where I can tell you about your parents."

"Alright, that sounds great." Naruto said. With that the two of them left the hospital. It didn't take long to reach their destination, after all he came here every day. He'd brought Naruto to the Memorial Stone. Kakashi mourned lost comrades and family here and now Naruto would as well. He just hoped bringing the boy here was the right ting to do.

"Hey Kakashi-sensei, what this stone and why does it have all these names carved on it?" Naruto asked.

"This is a very special stone Naruto. It's called the Memorial Stone. It's a monument to all the shinobi of this village who lost their lives in the line of duty. Look closely, you'll find a name you should be able to recognize." Kakashi watched Naruto scan the stone, looking for the name he meant. He new the boy had found it when he saw his eyes widen.

"Kushina Uzumaki. Is that-"

"Your mother, yes. She was a great kunoichi and a kind woman, though she was famously known for her short temper. Her nickname was the Red Hot-blooded Habanero. As the story goes she thought your father was a wimp until he rescued her from a group of enemy ninja."

"She sounds like Sakura... Oh so _that's_ what you meant when you said it was just like my parents. So wait, then who was my father?"

"Your father was someone very famous Naruto, his was name Minato Namikaze." Kakashi said.

"That name isn't ringing any bells Kakashi-sensei." Naruto replied bluntly.

"Oh trust me Naruto, you know who he is, just under a different title. Look over there, you'll see him." Kakashi pointed to the very visible Hokage faces. It didn't take Naruto long to connect the dots.

"My father is the Fourth Hokage," Kakashi nodded, "Wait you said you were trained by my dad, you were _trained_ by the Fourth Hokage?"

"Yes and I'm the only member left of that team." Kakashi frowned slightly, bad memories flooding his mind.

"Why would my dad seal a demon in me? It's caused me nothing but pain." Naruto mused.

"Housing the Kyuubi inside you is a great responsibility Naruto. You are all that stands between Konoha and destruction. People still fear the fox and don't understand what happened to it so they take it out on you. Just remember that your father had faith that you could handle this and you don't get to be Hokage without a good gut instinct."

"Wow my dad had that much faith in me? Kakashi-sensei, you said you were the last member of your team still around. What were your teammates like?" Kakashi closed his visible eye for a moment as he tried to gain control of his emotions.

"My first teammate was a boy named Obito Uchiha."

"An Uchiha huh, I bet he was stuck up like Sasuke."

"No, he was actually a lot like you Naruto. Loud, brash, and with a dream to become Hokage someday. Like you he was at the bottom of the class. I was the one who was like Sasuke back then. Obito was my best friend, even if I didn't want to admit it at the time. He's one of the greatest shinobi, I've ever known, second only to your parents. He taught me a very important lesson that changed my life."

"What happened to him?"

"He died saving our other teammate, Rin Nohara. Obito loved Rin, but she loved me. I had no feelings for her beyond friendship. Obito never told her how he felt. As for Rin, she died on a later mission defending the village." Kakashi turned away from Naruto so the boy wouldn't see him cry.

"Wow, the life of a ninja is tough huh?"

"Yes it is Naruto. Now I want you to do me a favor: Don't end up like Obito." Naruto gave him a confused look.

"But you said he was one of the greatest ninja you'd ever known. Why wouldn't I want to be like him?"

"What I meant was I want you to be _better_ than Obito Naruto. Don't let Sakura be your Rin."

"I get it, you want me to get the girl." Naruto said with a foxy grin. That wasn't exactly what Kakashi meant, he kind of hoped Naruto would let Sakura go, but hey, if he could get her to like him, that worked too he supposed, beggars couldn't be choosers after all.

"Wait until Sakura hears I'm the son of the Fourth, she'll ditch Sasuke for me for sure!"

"No, Naruto, you can't tell Sakura or Sasuke who your parents are until I say you can, or anyone else for that matter."

"Aw, why not Kakashi-sensei?"

"Do you want Sakura to like you for who _you_ are or who your father was?"

"Good point."

"Now then, I think we've kept your teammates waiting long enough."

* * *

To say that Sakura was livid was the understatement of the century. This day had started out so well. She'd been placed on Sasuke's squad and everything. Then Naruto had to go and mess it all up. She still couldn't believe what that blonde idiot had done. Not only had he stolen Sasuke's first kiss this morning but now hers as well!

Ino was never going to let her live this one down, everyone was already teasing her about how she couldn't tell the difference between Naruto and Sasuke. The next time she saw that brat he was going to _pay._ He was lucky he'd gotten away from her this morning. He hadn't been seen at the academy since, probably hiding from her. It served him right as far as she was concerned.

Then there was Sasuke. He hadn't said a word to her since the incident. He hadn't said a word to anyone, though he rarely did truth be told. His words when he'd found her and Naruto kept replaying in her head.

" _As far as I'm concerned you two are perfect for each other. You're both_ annoying _. I can't believe I got stuck on a team with you idiots. Just do me a favor and stay out of my way."_ He thought she was annoying and an idiot? Was this how Naruto felt when she rejected him? At least he'd tried to be nice to her, unlike Sasuke.

Then again, what did she care about how Naruto after he'd played that nasty trick on her? He deserved everything he got. Why had he done that anyway? Why did Sasuke hate her? Was he even worth pursuing when he so openly hated her? She was so confused!

On top of all of that their Jonin sensei hadn't shown up yet and it was almost sunset. Just where were they anyway? She and Sasuke had been the only ones in this room for hours, which Sakura would normally consider a good thing, but after the incident with Naruto she wasn't so sure. Then a terrible thought stuck her. Once their new sensei arrived she'd have to explain where Naruto was. That could only end badly.

As if on cue the doorknob turned and the door opened to reveal Naruto of all people but he wasn't alone. He had a lanky silver haired masked man with him. Sakura thought the masked man looked strange, especially with his headband covering his left eye.

"Yo, I'm Kakashi Hatake, and I'm your new sensei." _This_ guy was their sensei? He seemed disconcertingly relaxed about the whole situation. If he had Naruto with him he had to know something about what had happened, Really, he didn't look like much. Still she had bigger fish to fry, namely Naruto.

"Naruto are you the reason Kakashi-sensei was so late? We've been waiting here for _hours_! Why I oughta clobber you for this!" She roared.

"Why yes, Naruto _is_ the reason I'm late. You must be Sakura, Naruto's told me a lot about you and so far I'm not impressed. You see I had to take Naruto to the hospital and have him checked out to see if he'd sustained any serious injuries when _someone_ beat the tar out of him." Sakura opened her mouth to protest, but Kakashi held up a hand to forestall any argument.

"Yes, I know what he did, he told me. Yes it was wrong, but what you did is also wrong. Like it or not you're on the same team now. Start acting like it. I will not tolerate violence between comrades, am I _clear_?" It was like a switch had been flipped, the kindly aloof man was gone and in his place was someone who was as cold as ice.

"Crystal clear Kakashi-sensei." Sakura had to resist the urge to curl up into fetal position to get out of Kakashi's line of sight.

"Good, now I believe Naruto has something to say to you." Kakashi said. Naruto approached Sakura slowly, almost like a wounded animal. Had she really scared him that badly? Well maybe it would keep him from trying any funny stuff with her from now on.

"Sakura, I'm sorry, I shouldn't have transformed into Sasuke and tricked you like that. It was wrong and I should have known it was wrong. I just... wanted to spend some time with you, you know? You were always so focused on Sasuke, I thought maybe if I looked like him... It was stupid and I'm sorry." Sakura wanted nothing more than to lambaste Naruto and to tell him that he _should_ be sorry for that dirty trick he'd pulled. That was a sick joke, but something stopped her.

His apology actually seemed... sincere. He'd realized what he'd done was bad, maybe with the help of Kakashi. That and the reasons he gave... they were a lot like the reasons for why she did so much of what she did: To spend time with Sasuke. Maybe they had more in common that she thought. He just wanted to be accepted by her.

"Apology accepted Naruto, just don't do it again." She said.

"I won't Sakura, I promise." He replied.

"Good," Kakashi said turning toward Sasuke, "Now to deal with you."

"What do you mean deal with me?" Sasuke demanded.

"I mean stop looking so smug. You're not off the hook for your part in this, you saw Sakura beating Naruto and did nothing about it."

"Why should I care what these losers do? They'll do nothing but hold me back anyway." Sasuke said with a shrug.

"You think so do you? Well, we'll just see about that tomorrow won't we?" Kakashi remarked cryptically.

"What do you mean Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura asked.

"I mean there's one final test before you truly become ninja. In order to ensure that the quality of shinobi in Konoha is maintained all Jonin sensei give their new Genin team a pass-fail test to determine whether or not they are truly ready. The actual test given depends on the Jonin. At least two thirds of the graduating class will fail these tests and be sent back to the academy."

"That means all the work we put in at the academy could end up meaning nothing." Sakura said.

"Hold on, I was with you all day and you never mentioned this test!" Naruto protested.

"Oh, I didn't? It must have slipped my mind," Kakashi said lightly, "Meet me at the Third Training Ground tomorrow at dawn. Oh, and don't eat breakfast or you'll puke. Have a good night." Kakashi waved at them and disappeared in a flurry of leaves.

* * *

So a little author's note here. I fell out of the Naruto fandom during Part II because I felt the plot was getting too weird and full of holes, but I kept up with the general goings on. I'd kind of wanted to write a Naruto fic but with new info coming out all the time it was kind of hard to plot things. Now that the main story is over I feel I can write a fanfic in the fandom.

I shipped Narusaku, so I really wanted to do something with that despite the canon ending. I wanted to make the smallest initial change to canon possible to have them get together and this is what I came up with. For those worried there will be no Hinata bashing in this story. She's actually my favorite character in the series, I just don't like her with Naruto.

Anyway it's been a while since I've done anything in the Naruto universe, so I'm a bit rusty. I'm just throwing this out there and seeing what reaction I get. Please leave a review, constructive criticism is always welcome.


	2. Chapter 2: Team Unity Lessons

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto.

 **The Difference a Kiss Can Make**

 **Chapter 2: Team Unity Lessons**

Sakura barely slept that night. The events of the day kept replaying in her head. Her emotions were all mixed up from her interactions with Naruto and Sasuke. She was still slightly annoyed with Naruto for the kiss trick he'd pulled. Maybe with Kakashi-sensei around he'd turn over a new leaf, but she wasn't holding her breath on that one.

Then there was Sasuke, the boy of her girlish fantasies. He was, cute, a super skilled ninja, at least for their age, and he had that brooding bad boy persona that just oozed cool. It was no wonder nearly every female in their class had fallen for him. It was an obvious conclusion really, he was everything a girl could want in a boyfriend and future husband.

At least that was what Sakura had thought of Sasuke before yesterday, now she wasn't so sure. He'd coldly dismissed her, calling her annoying and telling her to stay out of his way. Like she'd done yesterday she reflected on how similar that was to her treatment of Naruto. She shook her had to banish that thought. It wasn't the same, she wasn't like Naruto. She just had to prove to Sasuke that she could be useful and then he'd fall into her arms.

The thought of Sasuke finally being hers put butterflies in Sakura's stomach. She'd have to work extra hard during this test Kakashi was giving them today so she could impress Sasuke. She'd have to take a bit more care with her appearance today as well, being a strong kunoichi was good, but it wouldn't amount to much if he couldn't also see her as a beautiful girl.

Thankfully she had the time to take extra care with her appearance because Kakashi had forbade them from eating breakfast this morning. Of course that came with its own set of drawbacks, namely that she was _starving_. She was on a diet so she'd skipped dinner last night. The rumor mill said that Sasuke liked skinny girls so Sakura did her best to keep her girlish figure intact.

Of course that particular rumor as far as she could tell had been started by Ino Yamanaka, Sakura best frenemy for lack of a better term. Since Ino was also after Sasuke's affections Sakura had to take everything that came from her, or even possibly came from her with a grain of salt. It wasn't outside the realm of possibility that Ino was seeding false information to try and sabotage her chances with Sasuke. Though since Ino wasn't blowing up like an Akimichi the chances were good that there was at least _some_ truth to this rumor.

The things she did for true love, she truly wished starving herself didn't have to be one of them. With a sigh she finished getting dressed using her forehead protector to hold her hair back. There was no point sitting around at home and she hoped to impress her new sensei by being early. When she got to the training ground she found only Sasuke waiting there.

Sakura smiled a bit at the chance to have some alone time with Sasuke. She'd finally have a chance to just talk to him. As she tried to think of something to say she quickly realized that she knew next to nothing about her crush and what he liked and found interesting. All she really had was hearsay and rumors.

Oh well, they had to start somewhere, they were on the same team and destined to be together. "Hi Sasuke." That sounded weak even to her. There were a million things she could've said and all she could manage was "Hi Sasuke"? It was innocuous enough that maybe it would break the ice at least.

Sasuke didn't speak or acknowledge that she had spoken in any way. Sakura wilted slightly, that was obviously a non-starter. Maybe if she tried something a little more topical... "So are you nervous about this test? Kakashi-sensei seems like a pretty strict instructor. I'm sure we can pass if we work together as a team though."

That appeared to be the wrong thing to say. Up until now Sasuke had been in a sort of hunched over sitting position with his eyes pointed toward the ground. When she finished speaking his head snapped up and his eyes focused on her, but his expression was anything but warm and friendly.

"Kakashi is an idiot. He seems to think that I'll actually need help to pass his little test. I'll show him just how wrong he is. Like I told you yesterday, just stay out of my way." Sakura's mouth opened and closed several times with no sound coming out. Finally she began to sob, she'd hoped yesterday had been just a fluke, a misunderstanding but now it really seemed like he wanted nothing to do with her. Unfortunately it was at that moment that Naruto arrived.

"Hey Sakura, what's wrong?" He asked immediately noticing her distressed state, "Was Sasuke a jerk to you again?" Naruto's gaze shifted over to the brooding boy and though neither said a word from just a look it seemed Sasuke had confirmed Naruto's suspicions.

"Hey we're supposed to be a team. You can't treat Sakura like that!" Naruto declared.

"Just what are you going to do about it? You're nothing but a little knucklehead." The Uchiha replied. Naruto growled in frustration.

"I beat you once Sasuke, I can do it again!" He shouted. Sasuke just smirked.

"Go ahead and try it, you took me off guard last time. I don't make the same mistake twice."

"Oh yeah?" Naruto looked like he was about to charge Sasuke and start a fight. Sakura knew she had to do something and fast before someone, most likely Naruto, got hurt. She quickly grabbed his arm and held him back.

"Naruto, stop, don't you remember what Kakashi-sensei said? He doesn't want us fighting with each other, don't let Sasuke get to you; it'll only get you into trouble if you do." Sakura said.

"He made you cry Sakura, I can't just let him get away with that." Naruto protested.

"Yes you can, I told you to, call it a favor. I'll owe you one okay?" She replied. Slowly she felt Naruto relax in her grip, though he did let out a frustrated growl as Sasuke turned away.

"Alright, but I'm only doing it for you. Honestly I don't get what his problem is. People actually _like_ him and he still insists on being a loner." Sasuke's eyes abruptly snapped back toward Naruto. Sakura could see a cold amusement and if she wasn't mistaken, a bit of... curiosity in them.

"You really don't get it do you Naruto? I thought you of all people would understand where I was coming from."

 _What could Naruto and Sasuke possibly have in common? They're as different as night and day._ She was relieved when Naruto seemed to be as confused as she was. Of course unlike her Naruto probably didn't care enough to figure out what Sasuke was talking about. The young kunoichi in training wracked her brain trying to think of some connection that her two male teammates might share, When it finally dawned on her she wanted to smack herself on her large forehead. How could she be so stupid that she could forget something _that_ important about her crush?

"The Uchiha Massacre. You've spent the last four years alone, without a family." She hadn't meant to say it out loud. Even when she did it was nothing but a whisper, but it may as well have been a shout in this quiet training ground.

"I learned then that I could rely on no one. Every stride I've made since that day I made on my own. All for a single all consuming goal that only I can achieve. I've gotten this far on my own why should I go looking to get close to people now, when the one closest to me..." Sasuke cut off abruptly, as if realizing he'd said too much. He turned away from them and Sakura got the distinct impression that no amount of prodding would get Sasuke's attention now.

 _Me and my big mouth, now he_ definitely _won't talk to me._ Still part of her couldn't help but be glad that she'd spoken. At least now she knew the reason for Sasuke's cold shoulder. It wasn't personal, or rather it _was_ personal, it just had nothing to do with her. Sasuke needed to learn how to trust others again. If she could teach him that... Sakura blushed and barely suppressed a squeal as she pictured their wedding. She was drawn out her thoughts by Naruto's voice.

"So Sakura, how are you this morning?" He asked. Boy, he sure was chipper for someone who had been about to get into a fistfight not even ten minutes ago. He was even giving her his trademark grin. With the tension of the moment deflated her mind turned to other matters and her growling stomach answered for her.

"Hungry," she replied through a yawn, "and tired, I didn't sleep a wink last night."

"Well I don't have any food with me, but since Kakashi-sensei is running late why don't you take a nap and I'll wake you up when he gets here?" Her first instinct was to refuse the offer. After all Naruto was the notorious class prankster; this seemingly kind offer could simply be a way to set her up for some sort of practical joke. Then again, despite Naruto's predilection for pranks he had never actually pulled one on her, the kiss incident notwithstanding.

"Thanks Naruto." Sakura leaned against a tree and let sleep take her.

* * *

Naruto watched Sakura drift off to sleep and once he was sure she was getting the rest she needed walked away. He was sure that Sasuke wasn't going to bother her, or him for that matter, and he had other things to do. After all, Naruto knew this training ground it was where Kakashi had taken him yesterday after their trip to the hospital. This was the place with the Memorial Stone.

In the light of the rising sun he scanned the names on the stone. He'd only been here once so he hadn't memorized where the ones he was looking for were. It took him some time but eventually he wound the names Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzumaki. While he was doing that he also made special note of Obito Uchiha and Rin Nohara.

"Well, Mom and Dad I'm about to officially start my ninja career today. That is if I pass Kakashi-sensei's test. I hope I can make you proud. I know I have a lot to live up to. I wish you were here." Naruto just stood there in front of the Memorial Stone telling his parents all about his life. He wasn't sure if they could hear him, he didn't know if he believed in an afterlife, but it made him feel better. He wasn't sure how long he stood there or when the tears started flowing but he was pulled out of his reverie when he felt a hand on his shoulder. Naruto turned to see Kakashi beside him.

Naruto hastily tried to wipe the tears away, not wanting his new sensei to see him as weak. This caused the masked man to chuckle.

"There's nothing to be embarrassed about Naruto, I talk to them too. As for crying I do that more than you would believe. I know in the Academy they teach you that shinobi are supposed to be emotionless tools who are only concerned with completing the mission, but at the end of the day it's not that simple. Even the best shinobi is still human, no matter how deep we bury our emotions they're still there. It's alright to grieve." Kakashi said.

"Thanks Kakashi-sensei, still could you not tell Sasuke and Sakura about this? They might think it's silly." Naruto said.

"I don't think Sasuke would find it silly, still you have my word that I won't tell them. This is a private matter after all." Kakashi assured him.

Naruto found it hard to believe that his rival wouldn't mock him for crying. Then again, Sasuke _had_ claimed that he thought that Naruto should understand him better than anyone. Sakura had mentioned something that had happened to Sasuke's family... "Kakashi-sensei, can you tell me about the Uchiha Massacre?" He asked.

"Didn't they teach you about that in the Academy? It's a big event in Konoha's history." Kakashi asked.

"I must have skipped that class." Naruto scratched the back of his head sheepishly. Kakashi sighed.

"I could easily tell you all about the Uchiha Massacre, Sakura could also give you an overview if you asked her, but if you want to get a firsthand perspective there's only one person you can ask: Sasuke. As your sensei I think it would be best if you got the story from him; it's personal, it wold be wrong to get it from anyone else."

"Are you crazy sensei? Sasuke _hates_ me, I doubt he's going to what to tell me about his family." Naruto said.

"Then consider it a challenge. You're teammates now, you need to build trust. Once that trust is built you will be far more effective as a unit. Once that happens you'll be able to share your burden with Sasuke and Sakura. Do you understand now Naruto?"

"Yeah, I think so sensei, teammates need to learn to trust each other, but that takes time, so I cant just go around asking about their deepest secrets or telling them mine before we've built a bond right? That's not going to be easy with Sasuke, he _really_ doesn't like me, but I think Sakura is starting to warm up to me." Naruto's eyes widened in horror after mentioning his sleeping teammate. "Oh crap! I promised Sakura I'd wake her up when I saw you coming so she wouldn't get in trouble for sleeping, but if you're already here..." Oh Sakura was going to kill him!

Kakashi chuckled. "Don't worry Naruto, neither Sasuke or Sakura have seen me yet. You go wake her up and I'll make it look like I just arrived okay?"

"Thanks Kakashi-sensei, I owe you one!" Naruto said before running off to where his teammates were.

* * *

Kakashi sighed, he wasn't sure why he agreed to hide while Naruto woke up Sakura. Maybe he was just feeling nostalgic because they reminded him of Minato and Kushina. Maybe he just felt like Naruto had had enough bad breaks in his life already. Maybe, just maybe, he was growing _attached_ to these kids. It almost made him feel bad for what he was about to put them through. Almost.

The bell test provided a valuable lesson to prospective shinobi about team unity. On top of that it was a training method that had been passed down through the generations and the teams that went through it invariably became some of the most powerful Konoha had ever seen; he could even count himself in that group without a hint of hubris. It was hard to argue with proven results like that.

Besides if any team needed this lesson it was this one. Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura were the most dysfunctional trio of ninja he'd ever seen outside of his own genin team. They had potential, Naruto and Sasuke's was obvious, but Sakura had it too. Hers was buried deeper, mainly because she'd been more concerned with gaining Sasuke's affections. Hopefully he'd be able to coax her into applying herself into becoming a strong kunoichi. The bell test was the first step on the road to refining these kids into what he knew they could become, he just hoped they passed.

Kakashi circled around the training ground discreetly so Sasuke and Sakura wouldn't know he'd already arrived. From his perch in a nearby tree he watched Naruto wake Sakura up and made his way toward his prospective team of students. "Yo." He greeted nonchalantly, giving his students a halfhearted wave. Sakura glared at him.

"You're late!" She shouted pointing at him accusingly. Naruto joined in but Kakashi knew that was just so the other two wouldn't question why he didn't, it would blow their entire cover story after all.

"Sorry, a black cat, crossed my path you see, so I had to take the long way around." Kakashi had put on his typical aloof mask for this performance. A ninja must see through deception, he wondered if his students would figure out that he often hid his true self, they had seen glimpses of who he really was, but this was likely to confuse them. "At any rate we should get to why you are here today. Your objective is to take these bells and whoever doesn't won't get these delicious boxed lunches I've prepared and will end up tied to a stump watching while the rest of us eat."

"So that's why you told us not to eat breakfast." Sakura said with a groan. "Wait, why are there only two bells?"

"That is a very good question Sakura. You see, whoever doesn't get a bell by noon will not only be tied to a stump, but will also be sent back to the Academy." Kakashi said with a disarming smile as he let that sink in. He pulled out his mini alarm clock and set it on the flat stump at the forefront of the training ground. "It's set for non so that gives you two hours to retrieve the bells." With that said his students scattered.

An hour and a half later Kakashi was beginning to far that he would have to fail yet another crop of genin. Even worse this crop included his sensei's son and the last Uchiha loyal to Konoha, this would no doubt have some in the higher echelons in the village giving him sidelong glances. Not the Hokage thankfully, he'd used this very technique in training the Legendary Sanin; he understood how valuable this test was. The saddest part of all was that this test had only proved him right about the team's potential if he could get them to work together.

Naruto was so much like Obito it hurt, charging in without thinking, having something to prove and falling for obvious traps, but the right teacher could fix that. Sakura, had fallen easily to a genjutsu, she had plenty of knowledge, but no practical application. Again, easily fixable with the right teaching, and she was even showing some slight promise in the teamwork department as she'd used a thrown kunai to free Naruto from his rope trap.

The real issue here was Sasuke. The kid was good, Kakashi couldn't deny that, but Kakashi saw _far_ too much of his younger self in the boy. A prodigy with nearly unmatched skill for his age who looked down on everyone who wasn't as good as he was and wanted to do things on his own or using others only as a means to an end. Both had been defined by something their family members had done. Kakashi had learned his lesson. He only hoped that Sasuke didn't have to go through the same kid of tragedy he had to learn that lesson. He'd already taken steps to humble Sasuke and make him more teachable, leaving him neck deep in the dirt with his Headhunter jutsu.

Right now he was watching Naruto from afar as the boy swiped a box lunch. He was about to confront Naruto about it when he noticed that the boy wasn't sitting down to eat, but rather taking off into the trees. The jonin followed his student, curious what Naruto was planning. It shouldn't have surprised him that Naruto had gone straight for Sakura.

"Hey Sakura, I brought you some food." He said. Showing the pink haired girl the pilfered lunch. Sakura looked absolutely mortified at the sight of it.

"Naruto what were you thinking? Kakashi-sensei will be livid when he finds out. He'll notice a missing lunch and we'll fail the test for breaking the rules!" Naruto's jovial expression turned serious.

"You said you were hungry Sakura, and you're not going to be able to fight your best on an empty stomach. You're not going to get a bell from Kakashi-sensei like this. If you do get a bell it will impress Sasuke and I can always try to graduate again next year, should be easy now that I know the Shadow Clone jutsu. So I'll take the blame with Kakashi-sensei; I'm the one who took the lunch anyway. He doesn't have to know that you're the one that ate it."

"Naruto, you'd really risk getting sent back to the Academy for me, even after all the trouble you had graduating in the first place?"

"Of course Sakura, it's no big deal." Naruto grinned.

"No Naruto, that's a _very_ big deal. At least split the lunch with me. You have to be just as hungry as I am with all the chakra you've been throwing around and if we're going to get those bells it will take at least two of us, if not all three. Kakashi-sensei is a skilled ninja after all. Thank you for this Naruto." Even from his vantage point Kakashi could see the warm smile the girl was giving Naruto.

"Anything for you Sakura." Kakashi watched the two split the lunch and waited for the two to finish before pouncing. He had every intention of losing the ensuing fight and letting these two have the bells. They'd learned the most valuable lesson a shinobi could without him having to teach it to them. "Those who break the rules are scum, but those who abandon their friends are worse than scum."

Kakashi popped out of his hiding place and dropped into his menacing ANBU persona. "So you two thought you could cheat did you? Well you're gong to pay for that." Naruto gave a minute nod to Sakura immediately took off in the other direction, maybe he'd have to reevaluate wither she had learned the lesson...

"If we get the bells we pass your test right? Well then, I'm going to get me a bell and one for Sakura too!" Naruto declared, his eyes burning with determination that would give Gai a run for his money. The blonde genin made a familiar cross shaped hand seal. "Multi Shadow Clone jutsu!" Kakashi eyes widened as several hundred clones of Naruto filled the clearing.

 _Well,_ this _could be a problem._ The clones rushed Kakashi and it was only his highly honed taijutsu skill that kept them from overwhelming him. The copy ninja quickly cycled through the hand seals for the Fireball jutsu and used the technique to dispatch several dozen clones. Only to hear the clear ringing if bells as Sakura lifted them from his belt. He'd been so focused on the attacks from Naruto's Shadow Clones that he hadn't noticed her sneaking back into the fray. It had been sloppy of him, but he'd wanted this outcome anyway. If he'd really been trying they never would have touched those bells.

"Naruto, catch!" Sakura tossed one of the bells and one of Naruto clones nicked it from the air and handed it to the original who dispelled the jutsu. Naruto let out a victory whoop.

"Congratulations you two, you pass. Now then I believe that means we have to go tie Sasuke to a stump."

* * *

Sakura felt guilty as she looked at Sasuke tied to the stump. She'd sent him back to the Academy by tossing Naruto that bell, but what was she supposed to do? Naruto had put his ninja career on the line for her by stealing that lunch and she'd only been able to get the bells because of his amazing distraction. Naruto _deserved_ that bell. The problem was she wasn't sure she deserved hers.

"This test is a joke!" Sasuke growled straining against the ropes as the other three ate lunch. "There's no way that Naruto and Sakura got those bells from you when I couldn't. I saw them fail." The Uchiha's mood wasn't just surly because of his failure, but because Naruto had been rubbing it in. Sakura didn't approve of course, so he'd quickly stopped when asked. Though truth be told given how Sasuke viewed him she could understand Naruto basking in this victory.

"You're right Sasuke, they couldn't have gotten those bells from me, not alone anyway.. They got them because they worked together as a unit, and even then they wouldn't have been able to if I didn't want them to. I let them have the bells but I passed them because they learned the lesson. You didn't, it's that simple. We put you in squads for a reason. You need to realize this or you'll never get anywhere." Kakashi said with a sigh.

"I don't need a squad. The things I have to do I must do alone. I'm only becoming a shinobi so I can get strong enough to fulfill my ambition. Nothing else matters. Not you, not your test, _nothing!_ I should free myself from this rope with the Escape jutsu and just take one of those bells from Naruto or Sakura." Sasuke roared.

"Try it, and you won't even be going back to the Academy. I will personally make sure you _never_ become a shinobi Sasuke. You failed, now accept your punishment like a man." Kakashi's voice was pure ice and it sent a shiver down Sakura's spine.

"Kakashi-sensei are you sure about passing Naruto and I? I mean we cheated by eating our lunch before noon." Sakura's guilt almost made her _want_ to be disqualified. Yes, they'd gotten the bells, but they'd done so by going outside the the parameters of the mission. It went everything they'd been taught at the Academy and yet Kakashi was rewarding them for it.

"Sakura, it's good that you want to play by the rules." Kakashi assured her, "In the shinobi world those who break the rules are scum, but those who abandon their friends are worse than scum." Sakura could have sworn she saw her sensei wink at her. She looked over at the alarm clock, there was still three minutes before it went off...

She got up and walked over to Sasuke. "Sasuke, you're already a better ninja than I'll probably ever be, I want you to take my bell, you need it more than I do. At least you have some sort of ambition."

"Sakura, just know, if you give Sasuke your bell I will be forced to fail you." Kakashi warned.

"It doesn't matter Kakashi-sensei, I need to do this." Maybe helping him get one step closer to his ambition would help Sasuke warm up to her over time and then they could finally be together.

"I don't need or want your charity Sakura." Sasuke glared at her. She surprised herself when she didn't even flinch.

"It doesn't matter, you're getting it anyway." Sakura said shoving the bell into the pocket of his shorts. Then Naruto walked over to them.

"I want to you to take my bell Sakura." He said offering it to her. She shook her head with a sad smile.

"I can't take that Naruto. Neither of us would have gotten bells if it weren't for your Shadow Clones. You deserve that bell way more than I do."

"That doesn't matter Sakura, all you've wanted for years is to be on a team with Sasuke and I'm not going to stand in the way of that. No matter what it costs me, as long as you're happy I'll be fine." Sakura could feel herself choking up.

"Naruto..." She practically whispered.

"Enough, you all pass. Sasuke got the bell, and Naruto and Sakura, you both learned the lesson I was trying to teach. Report to the footbridge tomorrow morning so we can begin our first official day as Team 7, dismissed." Kakashi said.

* * *

Sasuke was fuming when he got home and he put all of that frustration into his training. To have come so close to being sent back to the Academy, only to be bailed out by _Sakura_ one of his fangirls... He'd never been so humiliated in his life. Somewhere Itachi was laughing at his weakness. So Sasuke pretended the punching bag was his older brother, even if that only proved the slightest release for his anger.

He had to get stronger. If Kakashi's little test had shown him anything it was that. If he could be outdone by Naruto and Sakura working together then he had a long way to go before he was ready to kill his brother. He would do whatever he had to in order to avenge his clan. He would show Kakashi, Naruto, and Sakura just how wrong they were about him.

The last words Itachi had spoken to him before he left the village rang in Sasuke's ears. "Foolish little brother, if you wish to kill me, curse me! Hate me! Live a long and unsightly life. Run away... Run away and cling to your pitiful life." Sasuke screamed in rage as he hit the punching bag so hard it split open. He would _not_ be pitiful!

* * *

Hey guys, sorry this update took so long. I was having a devil of a time trying to figure out how I wanted to handle the bell test. Also, trying to balance Sakura's crush on Sasuke while having her slowly warm up to Naruto. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. Next time we start the Wave arc. I know the changes have been pretty minor thus far, and will probably continue to be until the Chunin exams, but trust me, this is building to some _huge_ deviations from canon down the line. Until next time.


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